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OFFICE OF PUBLIC RELATIONS VOLUME 2 NO. 3 MARCH/APRIL 2010

JSU, Census counting on partnership

Jacksonville State University is partnering with the U.S. Census Bureau to ensure an accurate count in the dur-ing Census 2010 and encourages all students to do their part.

If you are a student, you should be counted where you live on April 1, 2010. For students living off campus, census forms will be delivered to your home in March 2010. Simply complete the form and mail it back. If you have questions or misplace your Census form, a Be Counted center will be located in the Theron Montgomery Building from March 22 – April 19, 2010 from 11 a.m. - 2 p.m.. Additional forms will be available there and someone will be available to answer any questions you may have.

If you live on campus, you will receive your Census form at your resi-

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JSU MARKETING CAMPAIGN WINS BIGBirmingham ad agency takes home 10 ADDY awards.

INSIDE

• Continued on page 5Mark your calendars!The weekend of April 18 will be a fun-

filled, three days of events as the Noble Street Festival opens its 2010 community extravaganza.

Beginning Saturday, the festival leads with the Sunny King Criterium Bike Race and concludes Sunday with

ON YOUR MARK, GET SET ... GO!

WWW.CHEAHACHALLENGE.COM REGISTER ONLINE

NOBLE STREET FESTIVAL FEATURES CHEAHA CHALLENGE, OTHER EVENTS

Today, our mission is more than reporting good news about Jacksonville State University. On a campus that is growing rapidly, the Marketing and Communications Department seeks to provide the JSU community a place to connect and participate with each other. So,

tell us what you think by going to our site at www.jsunews.com or call us at (256) 782-5636.

TELL US WHAT YOU THINK

JSU HOSTS GUBERNATORIAL FORUMCandidates vying to become Alabama’s next governor will gather at

Jacksonville State University’s Leone Cole Auditorium on April 20 at 5 p.m. for a round-robin forum. The event, co-sponsored by Farmers Insurance and JSU, is open to the public and the fi rst of its kind to be televised throughout the State of Alabama.

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When the time came to develop a new brand and marketing strategy for Jackson-ville State University, Birmingham-based Big Communications was called on for their help bringing the new JSU brand to life with a new logo, television commercials, Web site, print campaign and admissions video.

Big recently received 10 ADDY Awards from the Birmingham Advertising Federation

for its work on JSU’s campaign, developed in partnership with JSU’s marketing team.

For Tim Garner, JSU Executive Director for Marketing and Communications, brand marketing comes naturally after a career of working with brands such as Coca-Cola, Kel-logg and M&M Mars.

With Garner on the bandwagon, he turned to Big Communications for help with the task at hand.

“We visited Big, and I was sold almost immediately,” Garner recalls. “The rest is history. Even with the budget constraints that we’ve had, they have really taken us to a new level.”

Big is well known for creating award-winning campaigns that deliver results and change perception. The agency’s creative services fall under the direction of Chief Cre-ative Officer Ford Wiles, who also happens to be a JSU graduate.

“As an alumnus, it was an honor for me to come back to my university and help lead the rebranding effort,” Wiles says. “I’ve always believed that JSU was the best kept secret in the south, and it is exciting to help tell that story to potential students.”

Wiles graduated from JSU in 1996 with a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree.

He took several graphic design courses from Diana Cadwallader, a professor in the art department at JSU.

Wiles’ presence left an impact on Cad-wallader, and she recalls his talent even during his time in college.

“Ford’s student work had the same underlying qualities that distinguish his pro-fessional work – good solid typography and strong “edgy” concepts,” Cadwallader says. “He has kept his passion for design.”

That hard work paid off at the annual ADDY gala, put on by the Birmingham Ad-vertising Federation earlier this month, which rewards agencies like Big for their work on various campaigns. Several of the ADDY Awards Big won were for the work they ac-complished during the rebranding of JSU.

In total, Big won twenty-three awards. Big won eight silver ADDY Awards for the JSU campaign, including: Consumer or Trade Publication for the “Where You’re Going”

Ad agency scores Big with JSUcampaign

Photo by Angie Finley/JSUJohn Montgomery, president of Big Communications, Inc., poses with the Mosaic Award, a special judges’ award given for diversity in advertising.

Come join the excite-ment as Jacksonville State University welcomes the spring of 2010 with our JSU Spring Preview Day on March 27! This is a great opportunity for prospective students and their families to learn more about JSU.

During the browse ses-sion, university representa-tives from all departments and areas will be on hand to assist with any ques-tions about JSU. In addi-tion, we will offer housing and financial aid sessions (parents and students will receive information on the application process, eligi-bility fees and residence hall descriptions, financial aid information on the FAFSA, and work study opportunitites during these sessions), campus tours, and door prizes.

For questions about Preview Day or directions to JSU, call (800-231-JAX1 (5291) Option 6, or (256) 782-5260 or visit the JSU website.

JSU Spring Preview Day showcase

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TOWN & GOWN

CALLING ALL FACULTY/STAFF EXPERTSThe Office of Public Relations is updating JSU’s Faculty Experts Guide. Because of the many changes in the format of the guide, we encourage all faculty members who can speak with authority about a subject (even if it’s unrelated to your actual

job) to submit a new form with your updated information. We would like to make every entry as uniform and thorough as possible, so please attach a resume and vita. If you do not have a photo on file with us, please make arrangements with the

University Photographer or submit one of your choosing. To update your profile, please fill out the online form at http://www.jsunews.com/apps/faculty-update.

CVS Pharmacy has donated all the necessary vaccinations to student and faculty participants for an upcoming trip to the Galapagos Islands (May 17-24, 2010).

Specifically, CVS donated typhoid and hepatitis A vaccines to the 15 travelers visiting the Gala-pagos Islands. The trip will serve as an extension of the Evolution-ary Biology course offered during the May term. These donations were made possible by the actions of Dr. David Kelly, CVS pharmacist and manager of the Jacksonville CVS store.

For more information regard-ing the trip to Ecuador/Galapagos Island, please contact Dr. Mark Meade or Dr. Chris Murdock.

CVS donation helps biology department

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JSU IN THE NEWS

Photos by Dr. Chris MurdockAbout 15 faculty, staff and students will travel to the Gala-pagos Islands as part of the Evolutionary Biology course offered during the May term.

PUBLIC RELATIONS OFFICE OF MARKETING AND COMMUNICATIONS VOLUME 2 NO. 3 MARCH/APRIL 2010 3

Editors: Patty Hobbsand Angie FinleyNewsletter designer/editor:Bill BoykinsStaff contributors: Julie Skinner, Giselle Tucker and Lauren Cunningham

NEWSLETTER STAFF

The College of Arts and Sciences announces the appointment of Dr. Donnie Ford as the department head in the Department of Mathematical, Computing, and Information Sciences (MCIS) as of January 1, 2010.

Dr. Ford, a native of Calhoun County, joined the faculty at Jacksonville State University in fall of 1990 as an assistant professor of computer information systems. Dr. Ford received his undergraduate degree at JSU in 1974, his Master of Arts degree at the University of Alabama in 1984, and his Doctor of Philosophy degree in Management Science from the University of Alabama in 1988.

Dr. Ford was instrumental in establishing the first distance education course offered at JSU and continues to explore innovative ways to incorporate new technology into his classes and the department.

Under his tutelage as the MCIS computer science coordinator, the Bachelor of Science degrees in Computer Science and Computer Information Systems received accreditation through ABET, Inc. In addition, the Master of Science degree in Computer Systems and Software Design, which became a distance education program in 2008, was ranked #2 by GetEducated.com as the best buy in online master’s programs in computer science.

Dr. Ford’s publications include topics such as dynamic scheduling, database management, modeling systems and expert systems.

JSU plan to take school in ‘new direction’

Jacksonville State University is constantly undergoing changes in order to benefit the students that call it home. We do our utmost to make our school accessible and affordable while still

providing a high quality education. JSU has always strived to help students with the financial strains of

college by providing scholarship opportunities and financial aid. We are proud to announce the changes that we have recently made

concerning our university scholarships.JSU now offers six university scholarships, as well as numerous

scholarships financed through contributions to the JSU Foundation, each with its own benefits.

Students who apply to JSU with the qualifying ACT or SAT score and appropriate grade point average will now be automatically offered a scholarship.

Scholarships

Dr. William Meehan’s Town & Gown column appears weekly in the Jacksonville News. This is a reprint of that column.

Photo by Angie Finley/JSUAllison L. Clark, Pinson; Courtney M. Crosby, Jacksonville; Philip Michael Greenwood, Jack-sonville; Jansen L. Harmon, Southside; Kristin N. Hays, Attalla; Andrew J. Newsome, South-side; Benjamin J. Parr, Gadsden; and Joshua Wise, Ashville were the first recipients of JSU’s Elite Honors Scholarship last year.

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Consumer advocate, environ-mentalist, lawyer, author and four-time presidential candidate

Ralph Nader will speak at Jacksonville State University on Monday, March 29 at 7 p.m. in the Leone Cole Auditorium.

Nader’s talk for the evening is entitled “The Golden Rule or Rule by Gold? Subordinate Corporate Power to the Sovereignty of We the People.”

Following the lecture, Nader will answer questions from the audience and sell and sign copies of his books, The Seventeen Traditions and The Good Fight.

He will give away free copies of Easy Ways to Take Back the Planet by The Mission Collective with the purchase of his own titles.

Nader, a Harvard University educat-ed lawyer who ran for president on the Green Party ticket in 1996 and 2000 and as an Independent in 2004 and 2008, was named by The Atlantic as

one of the 100 most influential figures in American history.

Time and Life magazines also recognized him as one of the hundred most influential Americans of the Twen-tieth Century, and Time calls him the “U.S.’s toughest customer.”

Nader has been instrumental in creating an effective national network of consumer advocates, citizen activ-ists, and public interest lawyers and groups, and has been the catalyst for at least eight major federal consumer protection laws ranging from the motor vehicle safety laws to the Clean Air and Clean Water Acts. He helped created the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), the Environ-mental Protection Agency (EPA), the Consumer Product Safety Commis-sion, and the National Highway Trans-portation Safety Administration.

His 1965 book Unsafe at Any Speed, in which he took to task the

auto industry for their negligence in the production of unsafe vehicles, prompt-ed congressional hearings and stiffer safety laws, including the National Traf-fic and Motor Vehicle Safety Act.

During Nader’s career as consumer advocate he founded many organiza-tions including the Center for Study of Responsive Law, the Public Interest Research Group (PIRG), the Center for Auto Safety, Public Citizen, Clean Wa-ter Action Project, the Disability Rights Center, the Pension Rights Center, the Project for Corporate Responsibil-ity and The Multinational Monitor (a monthly magazine).

Nader continues to be an advocate of consumers’ rights in seeking justice in court against wrongdoers in the ar-eas of product liability, securities fraud, and medical negligence.

Four-time presidential candidate to visit JSU

Photo by CC Nick BygonConsumer advocate, lawyer and author Ralph Nader was named by several publications as one of the most influen-tial Americans of the Twentieth Century.

RALPH NADERThe consumer advocate will speak on the topic “The Golden Rule or Rule by Gold? Subordinate Corporate Power to the Sovereignty of We the People.”

■  WHEN: March 29■  WHAT TIME: 7 p.m.■  WHERE: Leone Cole Auditorium■  ADMISSION: Free and open to the public

Full-time citizen, the most important office in American for anyone to achieve.

— Ralph Nader, when asked to describe himself

" "

The Alabama Teacher of the Year Ms. Yung Bui-Kincer will speak on Thursday April 1 from 10-11 a.m. in the Theron Montgomery Auditorium on the JSU campus. Her talk is titled “A Promise.”

A refugee from Vietnam, Ms Bui-Kincer has an appreciative perspective on Education. At the time of her selection as Alabama Teacher of the Year, she taught anatomy, biology and environmen-tal science at Booker T. Washington Magnet School in the Montgomery County School System.

Attendance at the lecture is free and open to the public.

Ala. Teacher of the Year coming to JSU

JSU SPOTLIGHT

PUBLIC RELATIONS OFFICE OF MARKETING AND COMMUNICATIONS VOLUME 2 NO. 3 MARCH/APRIL 2010 5

Jacksonville State University and the Girl Scouts of North-Central Alabama invite the public to hear guest lecturer Gail Collins, New York Times editorial page editor, colum-nist and author of books on women’s issues, on Thursday, April 1 at 9 a.m. on the elev-enth floor of Houston Cole Library at JSU.

Ms. Collins joined The New York Times in 1995 as a member of the editorial board and later as an Op-Ed columnist. In 2001 she became the first woman ever appointed editor of the Times editorial page. At the beginning of 2007, she stepped down and took leave in order to finish her new book: “When Everything Changed: The Amaz-ing Journey of Ameri-can Women from 1960

to the Present.” She returned to the Times as a columnist in July 2007.

Before joining the Times, Ms. Collins was a columnist at New York Newsday and the New York Daily News, and a reporter for United Press International. Her first jobs in journalism were in Connecticut, where she

founded the Connecticut State News Bu-reau, which provided coverage of the state capitol and Connecticut politics. When she sold it in 1977, the CSNB was the largest news service of its kind in the country, with more than 30 weekly and daily newspaper chains.

Besides “When Everything Changed,” which was published in October of 2009 by Little, Brown, Ms. Collins is the author of “America’s Women,” “Scorpion Tongues: Gossip, Celebrity and American Politics,” and “The Millennium Book,” which she co-authored with her husband, Dan Collins.

Admission to the April 1 lecture is free.For more information, contact the JSU

Office of Public Relations at (256) 782-5636.

NY Times columnist is Girl Scout’s guest lecturer

File photoNew York Times columnist Gail Collins has author several books including her latest, ‘When Everything Changed,’ pub-lished in 2009.

GAIL COLLINS

The first women ap-pointed editor of the New York Times edito-rial page

■  WHEN: April 1■  WHAT TIME: 9 a.m.■  WHERE: Houston Cole Library■  ADMISSION: Free and open to the public

Yung Bui-Kincer

the Wells Fargo Advisors Cheaha Challenge. Event booths, highlighting restau-rants, music, art, a running race, and healthy activities for kids sponsored by area businesses, will also be featured. Jacksonville State University is one of several sponsors for this event.

The Noble Street Festi-val, produced by Northeast Alabama Bicycle Club, benefits Calhoun County

Relay for Life, a fund-raiser of the local chapter of the American Cancer Society. Almost $40,000 has been

donated since 2005. Sev-eral Calhoun County Relay Teams will be at the festival with creative fund-raising

booths.For more information,

go to www.noblestreet-festival.com or contact

volunteer festival director Mike Poe at mike.poe@wellfargoadvisors.com.

See you there!

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Our Mission

The Office of Public Relations is under the umbrella of the Department of Marketing and Communi-cations, headed by executive director Tim Garner. The staff includes Patty Hobbs, director of public

relations; and Angie Finley, public relations specialist.

When the Office of Public Relations began a website redesign last spring, our goal was to provide a one-stop news resource for the university community where anyone could get help publicizing campus events and follow news outside JSU.

Below is an overview of some of our site’s news features, all of which are accessible through the tabs and drop-downs arranged across the top of the site. Each of the following subheads has a corresponding tab; the features found in the drop-downs underneath that tab follow.

NEWSNews Home: From anywhere on our site, this link gets you back to our main JSU news page.Internal Publications: Many organizations and departments on campus publish individual newsletters. This page is intended to be a clearinghouse for those publications. If your department or organization has a newsletter not yet linked to this page, please forward the link to the publication on your own site or the publication itself (Microsoft Word or Adobe pdf format) to afinley@jsu.edu.News Resources on the Web: Here, we have gathered a selection of links to media outlets in one area. Although many of these were present through our previous site, we have added a link to the Newseum’s daily front pages, as well as a special section devoted to higher education publications.

CAMPUS COMMUNICATORSUnderneath this tab is all the information

needed for internal communications and campus publicity. If you are a JSU employee or student, you are a campus communicator!

Request News: This form is for submitting

news items for inclusion on our site, as well as for distribution to the media. We regularly send out press releases and have a large database of media contacts that we can use to help promote your campus events. Please help us by submitting your programs, events and news!

Request Photos: This contains contact information and directions for requesting a photographer at your campus event.

Electronic Sign Requests: This contains contact information for all electronic signs on campus, including the scoreboard at Paul Snow Stadium.

Campus Events Calendar Requests: Although we often promote events from the official campus events calendar, our office does not maintain it. This link takes you to the office that provides this service. Please note: To guarantee promotion of your event via our office, you should notify us of your event in addition to filling out the campus event request form!Tips for Getting and Giving Great PR: Some pointers for working with our office as well as with the media. Most important tip: Before you talk to the press, talk to us.Faculty/Staff Directory: Find any JSU employee easily from this hotlink.JSU Style Guide: This link to the JSU Style Manual offers a fast start to consistency in university publications. JSU Logos/Usage: There are strict guidelines regarding the usage of the JSU logos and identity. Visit this link to view or download the Style Guide and Graphic Identifications Manual.

(This is an overview of wwa few of our site’s news features.)

New PR website is one-stop resource center

The Jacksonville State University Office of Public Relations seeks to enhance the University’s public identity and foster positive relations between the University and our stakeholders through the collection, preparation and dissemination of news using both tradi-tional and technologically advanced means.

By recognizing and reporting the activities and accomplishments of our students and faculty, we make known the University’s ongoing mission to provide educa-tional, cultural and social experiences for a diverse undergraduate and graduate student popula-tion, and cultivate JSU’s vision to be the regional comprehensive institution of choice for students who want a strong, high quality education.

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dence hall or house in early April 2010. You will need to complete it and return it to the designated person at your hall or house.

Every year the federal government distrib-utes more than $400 billion to state, local and tribal governments based on census data.

Leaders use these data to guide planning decisions on where to build new schools, roads, hospitals, child-care and senior cen-ters and more.

Data also determine the number of seats each state will have in the U.S. House of Representatives and affect college and uni-

versity grant and loan programs.Information shared with the Census

Bureau is completely confidential. By law, the Census Bureau cannot share respondents’ answers with anyone, including other federal agencies and law enforcement entities.

The Census Bureau is also hiring. For more information about the 2010 Census, visit 2010census.gov. For more information about Census 2010 jobs, please contact Becca Turner at 782-5485.

An accurate count is in our hands. It only takes 10 minutes to answer 10 questions.

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print campaign, Interactive Media/Micro Site for WhereYoureGoing.com, Interactive Media/DVD for admissions video, Regional/National Television for “Where You’re Going” TV spot, Mixed Media Consumer for “Where You’re Going” campaign, Animation or Special Ef-fects for JSU admissions video, Music with Lyrics for “We Know Where We’re Going,” and Music Only for music concerning Jack-sonville State University.

Big also took home one Gold ADDY Award for JSU: Music with Lyrics for “Do You Know Where You’re Going.”

Besides the ADDY awards, Big received a special award -- the Mosaic Award for Diver-sity -- for their rebranding campaign at JSU.

“JSU’s student body is very diverse, and we worked hard not only to reflect that diversity in the campaign but also to make sure the campaign connects with potential students from a variety of backgrounds,” Wiles said. “It was exciting to be recognized by our peers for this effort.”

Wiles said that while several factors play into a student’s decision of where to go to college, it comes down to a feeling. Establish-ing a brand is all about creating the kind of emotional connection that reassures students that, “Yes, you will be happy here.”

JSU’s rebranding is still in full swing, and from the looks of it, the swing is to the right tune.

“We needed change,” Garner says. “We needed a modern brand presence that communicated the outstanding product that Jacksonville State has to offer. It’s really only the beginning with what’s in front of us. We’re pushing forward.”

Julie Skinner, a student worker in the Office of Public Relations, contributed to this article.

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Dr. Tim King, Associate Vice President for Enrollment Management and Student Affairs, says that while some may call this a radical change, it is one that will take JSU in a new direction.

“We’ve already had a very strong response,” says King, who added that the scholarships are not only available to Ala-bama residents but also to residents in ten contiguous counties in Georgia.

Dr. King works with all facets of enroll-ment and has been overseeing a Strategic Enrollment Management Plan that is geared toward bringing more students to JSU.

A central premise of the plan is to provide more non-loan-based financial aid opportunities.

More than five hundred students have already accepted these scholarship offers for the upcoming fall semester, totaling more than $2.5 million in scholarship dollars.

“These scholarships will transform JSU,” says Dr. Rebecca Turner, Vice President for Academic and Student Affairs. “They will bring even more students to our campus that have worked hard and are ready for higher education.”

Martin Weldon, director of the scholarship program at JSU, said the program has seen an increase in its acceptance rate over the past year.

“We had a 60 percent acceptance rate last year. I’m expecting that rate will increase for the upcoming school year.”

Each scholarship comes with its own advantages.

The scholarships will benefit students with ACT scores of at least 22 and SAT scores of at least 1030.

All scholarships are renewable providing the student maintains the minimum qualify-ing grade point average.

Dr. Joe Delap, Associate Vice President for Academic Affairs, says that he wants

prospective students to know that “JSU is committed to the highest degree of student success and persistence in school to gradu-ation, which these increased scholarship offerings help assure through students’ finan-cial stability, focus on studies and increased engagement on campus.”

Dr. King says that over time these modi-fications will not only benefit the campus but will have a positive impact on the community as well.

“This is the first year we are doing this,” he stated. “Right now there is no limit, so we’re excited to see where it takes us.”

The university scholarships are:Gem of the Hills Scholar: Requires an

ACT score of 22 or an SAT score of 1030, covers six in-state tuition hours per semes-ter.

Gamecock Scholar: Requires an ACT score of 24 or an SAT score of 1110, covers nine in-state tuition hours per semester.

Faculty Scholar: Requires an ACT of 26 or an SAT score of 1190, covers sixteen in-state tuition hours per semester and books.

Elite Scholar: Requires an ACT score of 30 or an SAT score of 1340, covers sixteen in-state tuition hours per semester, housing and meal plan.

Magnolia Scholar (Out of State): Re-quires an ACT score of 26 or an SAT score of 1190, covers nine in-state tuition hours per semester.

Mimosa Scholar (Out of State): Re-quires an ACT of 24 or an SAT of 1110, cov-ers six in-state tuition hours per semester.

(For more on JSU Scholarships, please visit our Financial Aid website: http://www.jsu.edu/finaid.)

Lauren Cunningham, student worker in the Office of Public Relations, contributed to this article.

“Farmers is proud to be a co-sponsor of the Governors’ Forum with Jacksonville State University.

The future of Alabama will be in the hands of one of these candidates, and we are happy that the students and the public will get to hear each of their views on the needs of our state,” notes Farmers Insur-ance Alabama State Executive Director, Christopher Simich.

This sentiment is echoed by Jackson-ville State University president, Dr. William A. Meehan who said, “JSU is excited to partner with Farmers Insurance to bring this important forum to our campus and encour-age participation in the American political process.”

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